Well, not Roger Steel, really, as he's been busy adventuring with his new found friends (and foes) and badgering me to write his chronicles and plot his daring escapes from certain death (because without me he'd be lost, the old duffer). Rather, c'est moi who has been absent from this forum for far too long. Sorry about that ... domestic issues, work issues, cat issues, and sundry other life-stuff have come between us, my beautiful people. But now (says he, somewhat rashly ) I hope to be back here providing regular SPs once more.

So for those who were beginning to wonder - Yes, Roger Steel is still in the schedule as a Winter Wolves game, if not exactly on the schedule Jack and I originally planned.

Rest assured, I haven't been idle on the Roger Steel front. Recently I've been busy casting the main party characters. By casting, I mean researching images for the artist(s) to use as references for the character art. This doesn't just mean finding lookalikes who could be chosen to play Roger, Ann, Arthur, and the rest in the blockbuster movie adaptation (coming soon to a screen near you ... ) but finding model poses that convey the quintessence of the character, and dressing them in costumes and gadgetry that, while being suitably sexy for a Winter Wolves game, are not completely ridiculous and blend well with the game's setting and environments.

Because of the steampunk aesthetic combined with the non-canon post-Victorian/Edwardian time period in which Roger Steel takes place, this has taken a bit more time than I anticipated, even without the distractions alluded to above. But it's all good fun and makes a change from the writing that is my day job and, come to think of it, my evening job too right now.

Of course, back in the days when pixels were PIXELS and we liked 'em that way, we had to imagine our hero or heroine in all his or her hi-res glory, and it's interesting to consider who, in the absence of in-game art so far, you might cast to play your Ann or Arthur, or the motley collection of characters they will adventure alongside.

I know there's been some discussion elsewhere on the forums about the merits of having unconventionally attractive (that's the politically correct term I believe) characters as romantic interests. Ultimately, of course, it comes down to sales, and whether having even a small number of unconventionally attractive main or supporting characters might negatively impact the game's reception. In real life, desperation, hormones, or simply good old-fashioned beer goggles might be factors in romantic assignations, however brief. Needless to say, game characters don't benefit from the same influences. But as we see around us every day, beauty lies in the eye of the beholder. People magazine might choose 'the most beautiful person in the world', but how many of us agree with its choice? Personally, the quirky looking girl or rather nerdy looking guy is often more attractive than any random supermodel or movie star.

Would Lara Croft be the icon she is if she had been presented to the world as an angsty and acne-plagued teenager carrying a few extra pounds around the caboose? On the other hand, those who have played Heavy Rain, the PS3 adventure, might recall the most memorable and perhaps likeable main character, was the middle-aged, rumpled, down-at-heel, and decidedly burly detective. Charisma can make up for a lot of physical shortcomings, but is difficult to convey in art (especially static art) and writing.

So what makes an attractive character for you? Is it physical appearance (whatever floats your boat in that regard), personality, attitude (reserved, extrovert, gung-ho or laid-back: Indiana Jones – in the classroom or in the field – or the Big Lebowski), or some more elusive 'aura' (for want of a better word)?

Anyway, that's enough for this Preview. There'll be another soon(ish) but in the meantime, please keep the comments coming! It's been fascinating for me to see how different aspects of the game have resonated with different players.

FenCayne wrote:So what makes an attractive character for you? Is it physical appearance (whatever floats your boat in that regard), personality, attitude (reserved, extrovert, gung-ho or laid-back: Indiana Jones – in the classroom or in the field – or the Big Lebowski), or some more elusive 'aura' (for want of a better word)?

Well, appearence may *cough* *cough* play a role if I buy a game or not. Specifically, Reid in Spirited Heart ... (Oh no, I am so shallow... ) Please look her up, she is not as slim as most characters.

Though that might be more suited to NPCs - I am not sure how many appearences you can provide for the PC (Roger Steele), and having a Nerd or whatever might put off more players than it attracts.

Regarding char personality, maybe you should provide variety. And do not be afraid of going too far, it is better to have an interesting cast where the player hates one or two of them, than to have a bland cast where the player just says meh. (There was a bit of discussion about meh elsewhere in the forum...) IIRC jack wrote that it would be difficult to retain all the people the player meets in the party, so if the player ... "dislikes" some NPC on sight it should be easy to ditch that one. Well, there is also the issue: if an NPC has unique and vital skills AND is disliked by the player, then the game would become a lot harder suddenly. Or impossible. Please avoid this, otherwise I am fine with a cast which has wide variety, even including some I dislike.

I think Fen means variety of the dateable party members, because for the main character I can't have variations (since I would need to do all those variations ON EACH romance CG... and it would be a bit expensive ). Variations as of clothing, no problem, but body size/hair/etc for the main character must be fixed, at least for now.

I mentioned that there would be difficulties in managing the party, more than in my other games, however we still need to plan this, and of course when Fen mentioned this idea to me, while I liked it a lot I had your same concerns, it must be very hard to piss off a character so much that he/she quits the party. I'm more inclined to just have him/her hate the PC (which could create some interesting situations during fights or other part of the story) but still not leave (of course for some good reason, like is a thief and must stick around to get a treasure even if he hates the PC).

I think Fen means variety of the dateable party members, because for the main character I can't have variations (since I would need to do all those variations ON EACH romance CG... and it would be a bit expensive ). Variations as of clothing, no problem, but body size/hair/etc for the main character must be fixed, at least for now.

I can see this.

I mentioned that there would be difficulties in managing the party, more than in my other games, however we still need to plan this, and of course when Fen mentioned this idea to me, while I liked it a lot I had your same concerns, it must be very hard to piss off a character so much that he/she quits the party. I'm more inclined to just have him/her hate the PC (which could create some interesting situations during fights or other part of the story) but still not leave (of course for some good reason, like is a thief and must stick around to get a treasure even if he hates the PC).

Well, when it comes to NPC leaving, it should be possible (for me as the player) to cause this deliberately. Maybe there could be a bit of warning when you have reached the point, like the NPC screaming "Apologize or it IS over".

I'm really looking forward to this one! The steampunk genre will offer us something different, I think.

As to 'unconventionally attractive NPCs', I'm all for it. I get really bored of the parade of identical pretty-boy bishies that are male love interests in most games. Most of the time I can't tell them apart. A male LI who was older or rugged could still be handsome, just a bit different from the usual fare.

And for lesbian love interests, I wouldn't mind a girl who looks like a bit 'dykier' for a change. All the girls seem to look like straight girls, with long hair and massive cleavage. She could still be pretty, just more boyish in how she looks, speaks and dresses. The protagonist in 'Love & Order' actually gives off a lesbian vibe, being pretty but not ultra-feminine. Then there's characters such as Marian Hawke or Aveline Vallen in Dragon Age, or Rebecca Chambers and Sherry Birkin in Resident Evil.

I'm all for NPCs who can die or leave, too. Killing Mesphit was my favourite part of the 'Loren' game outside of Karen's romance